Chasing the Dream
by the.goal.is.greatness
Summary: They used to say that if man was meant to fly he'd have wings. But he did fly. He discovered that he had to. [Dark x OC] [mentions Daisuke x Riku, Satoshi x Risa]
1. Chapter 01 Prologue

**Title:** Chasing the Dream  
 **Genre:** Romance  
 **Rating:** T  
 **Pairing:** Dark x OC, Daisuke x Riku, Satoshi x Risa  
 **Spoilers:** N/A  
 **Summary:** They used to say that if man was meant to fly, he'd have wings. But he did fly. He discovered that he had to.  
 **Word Count:** 431  
 **Warnings:** I'm pretending the anime ending never happened. So this is going the based off the abrupt ending of the manga and make assumptions as to what happened from there.

 **Disclaimer:** Not mine. Summary is from Star Trek: The Original Series.

 **A/N:** Dark deserves love. And if I'm being completely honest with you, I never liked Risa (other stories involving her notwithstanding). So I'm not pairing her with him here, and only for sake of avoiding two OC characters am I putting her with my Satoshi.

* * *

Over 300 years ago, a great artist of the Hikari family made a terrible bargain in order to bring his masterpieces to life. These works of art were beautiful… and dangerous. So dangerous that the greatest thief of that generation swore to steal all of them, to keep them away from innocents.

But the Hikari was not to be dissuaded. He created one more great work of art. _The Black Wings_. And from this painting a curse emerged, set in motion by the Hikari and Niwa who brought it into play.

Dark and Krad.

For a time, both men thought that the destruction of the artwork would be the end of their curse, their feud. But fifteen years later, it became apparent that their curse was only just beginning. That Dark and Krad would be doomed to like in an endless cycle of reincarnation within their families.

For how long, neither family knew…

* * *

Niwa Daisuke had felt a strange sort of aloneness ever since Riku had discovered his alternate identity but professed her love for him anyone. It was on that day that he felt Dark slip away from his mind with a smirk and a wave. Daisuke loved Riku, she was his Sacred Maiden, and he knew she loved him, too (Dark's disappearance was proof of that), but he had grown so used to Dark's presence that his mind felt… empty without him. Even before the Niwa family curse had activated, Dark had been inside him. Now there was nothing. Now he was alone in his own body.

But, as he gazed down at the tiny newborn body of his son, with his wife smiling at him in exhaustion, he knew it would only be a matter of time before he got to meet Dark again.


	2. Chapter 02 Love Gene

**Title:** Chasing the Dream  
 **Genre:** Romance  
 **Rating:** T  
 **Pairing:** Dark x OC, Daisuke x Riku, Satoshi x Risa  
 **Spoilers:** N/A  
 **Summary:** They used to say that if man was meant to fly, he'd have wings. But he did fly. He discovered that he had to.  
 **Word Count:** 1,231  
 **Warnings:** I'm pretending the anime ending never happened. So this is going the based off the abrupt ending of the manga and make assumptions as to what happened from there.

 **Disclaimer:** Not mine. Summary is from Star Trek: The Original Series.

 **A/N:** Dark deserves love. And if I'm being completely honest with you, I never liked Risa (other stories involving her notwithstanding). So I'm not pairing her with him here, and only for sake of avoiding two OC characters am I putting her with my Satoshi.

* * *

There was nothing. No sound. No light. No awareness of anything. For so, so long. How long, Dark could never tell – it always felt as if he were floating in dark water, or in a dream, with no sense of time or place. Then, slowly, so softly he could never tell when it first began, awareness would begin to drift back into his world. He would see a flash of color (A car? Hair? A building?) or hear a brief clip of a voice. The first person he heard, was always the last person he had heard from before. Daisuke's voice. Daisuke's laugh.

Oh, yes, he remembered now. There was a girl… what was her name this time? Riku… Harada Riku… that's right. She loved his tamer, and then Dark went away. Away to where there was nothing. To this realm the Hikari had created. To this limbo he lived in for years and years. Always wondering if this would be the generation when there were no new Niwa, when this would be the last time the world ever saw the Phantom Thief Dark.

But life was coming back – light. He could sense that something was coming, that he was close, so close – the pressure was an unbearable weight on his chest, a breath-hitching, all consuming ache that he couldn't release – if only he could –

"I'm sorry, Niwa-san, I don't return your feelings."

Yes!

Freedom!

Dark could feel the inky blackness of this realm fall away like water from a duck's back, felt himself clawing his way to the surface, inch by inch, slowly, so slowly…

He could hear his new tamer sputtering, could see flashes of a city street as he ran home, could hear voices asking questions – Was that Daisuke's voice? And a woman – Riku? He felt his host's anger, felt the body he was trapped in shift and stretch, felt sinews and muscles change as the form turned into something new, something familiar –

\- then the sweet, sweet release of tearing through the blackness, of consciousness stretching, of filling out into his body, of _being alive_ again.

A slow stretch of his back, like a cat after a long sleep, ignoring the panicked screaming of a young boy inside his own head, he slanted a cocky grin up at the boy (now a man) who he hadn't seen in a lifetime. "Hey, Daisuke, long time no see."

* * *

 _So you're telling me this is going to happen to me every time I think about Aya-san?!_

Dark stuck a finger in his ear as if that could help drown out the yelling inside his head. "Dai-chan, stop freaking out. It's not so bad." A slow smirk. "You get to see what it's like the be a real ladies man for a change."

 _I don't want to be a ladies man!_

"Ma, ma, you're just like Daisuke." Dark stood from where we was lounging on Niwa Dai's bed, feeling a brief clench of nostalgia for the last time he was in a Niwa's room. "Besides, it's almost time for us to get headed to the museum." A wide grin. "It's time for Phantom Thief Dark to make his next appearance."

* * *

 _ **Phantom Thief Dark will appear to steal the Eleventh Hour at 7 PM**_

From his perch atop a nearby roof, Dark could see the museum was surrounded by police officers, news reporters, and crowds of people – some sporting 'I Love Dark' posters. Ah, just like old times…

 _Dark I don't want to do this! It's not right!_

"It's tradition, Dai-chan! One your family has proudly – for the most part – and loudly borne for generations." He leapt off the building into the shadows below. "Besides, your job is pretty simple," with a quick yank, he jerked a passing security guard into the alley, knocked him out, and donned his hat and jacket. "All you have to do is find your Sacred Maiden," he pulled the hat low over his eyes and walked purposefully through the crowd, "And then you're home free!"

 _Dark! You're going to get caught!_

"Nah, this works every time." A girl near him turned to stare at him in confusion when he spoke to no one. Ignoring the alarm spewing from inside his head, he let a slow, lazy grin form, part gentlemen, all insolent rascal. "Sorry, ma'am, just talking out loud to myself."

"O-oh, that's okay, sir." Her face was as red as Daisuke's hair.

"Have a nice night," with a tip of his hat, he left her in a puddle of emotion and continued on, ignoring Niwa until he was all the way inside the museum. "See I told you, it works every time." A quick look around and he unerringly followed the long hallways to the control panel in the very back of the museum.

 _But isn't the statue in the East Wing?_

"Just you wait, little Niwa." And Dark flipped off the lights.

Immediately, chaos erupted: screams and shouts of panic, officers yelling orders, the buzz of walkie-talkies, pounding feet as security ran to and fro, trying to solve the issue. In the glare of flashlights, Dark became just another officer running down the halls. Only he was running towards the roof. Bursting out into the moonlight, he immediately took off his disguise, seconds before a small blur launched itself at him.

 _Wiz?!_

"Hey, little buddy!" He took the statuette from his partner. "You did good! Now for the grand finale!"

 _What just happened…?_

"Fancy meeting you here… Dark." Spinning back towards to rooftop entrance, a shadow shifted, moving forward, revealing itself to be a man hidden in the gloom behind the door. "It's been a long time." A slow smile, a glinting of glasses.

Dark relaxed. "Hiwatari," he grinned. "Or should I say, _Hikari_. What do you go by these days?" No answer. "By the way, do you have a brat of your own running around?" A laugh. "So I know who to keep my eye out for."

 _There's a Hiwatari Toya in my class…_

"So it's Hiwatari still, huh? Still trying to forget the past?"

Satoshi merely smiled and stepped further into the moonlight. "Please tell Daisuke I send my regards. And watch out for Dai-san, I know how dangerous being your tamer is."

 _He knows it's me?! Am I going to jail?!_

"Ah, you're no fun, Hiwatari! You know I'm perfectly careful!" A wink, even as Satoshi pulled out his radio and commed in their location. "Most of the time."

And Dark leapt off the roof, black wings scattering feathers against the backdrop of the moon.

It was good to be back.


	3. Chapter 03 Sacred Maiden

**Title:** Chasing the Dream  
 **Genre:** Romance  
 **Rating:** T  
 **Pairing:** Dark x OC, Daisuke x Riku, Satoshi x Risa  
 **Spoilers:** N/A  
 **Summary:** They used to say that if man was meant to fly, he'd have wings. But he did fly. He discovered that he had to.  
 **Word Count:** 1,811  
 **Warnings:** I'm pretending the anime ending never happened. So this is going the based off the abrupt ending of the manga and make assumptions as to what happened from there.

 **Disclaimer:** Not mine. Summary is from Star Trek: The Original Series.

 **A/N:** Dark deserves love. And if I'm being completely honest with you, I never liked Risa (other stories involving her notwithstanding). So I'm not pairing her with him here, and only for sake of avoiding two OC characters am I putting her with my Satoshi.

* * *

Niwa Dai was not happy. Dark could tell. The "love of his life" rejecting him aside, he was internally fuming over the innocuous statuette of a woman whose arm were the hands of a clock. A statue that sat perched on the family mantle now – like some smug display of Dark's thievery and prowess, a token his parents were displaying as a 'My Boy Became a Man' trophy. Vomit.

 _Come on, Niwa, it's not so bad!_

"You be quiet," came the reply, hissed out of the corner of his mouth. They were on their way to school.

It had been several weeks since the Eleventh Hour incident and Dark was growing restless. It was time to steal something again. School definitely wasn't as exciting as it had been with Daisuke last generation. The Harada girls certainly kept things interesting. At least Dai's friend wasn't a blossoming news reporter though (he was, in fact, the son of a notable astrophysicist so was quite possible the most boring kid on the planet). A few days after his glorious return into the world of Phantom Thief-ing they had run into Hiwatari's spawn in the halls.

Now there was a worthy adversary. Looking like a male version of Risa, but with all of Satoshi's calculated stares. Hiwatari intelligence, hidden behind a bright Harada smile. Terrifying. Dai was either not bright enough or not cynical enough to think ill of his cousin (what is the world coming to?) and so just assumed that because they were related he wouldn't turn him over to the police. Dark _was_ bright enough and for sure he was cynical enough so he was just trying to avoid that particular relation as much as possible.

 _Aw, you're no fun!_

"Why would this be fun?! There's a criminal living inside my head!" His heated whispers grew progressively loud enough that he was attracted curious stares. Dai hurried along.

 _Man, Daisuke wasn't this much of a cry baby._ Well, he was, but Dai didn't have to know that.

"Shut up!"

"Are you talking to me?"

Both heads shot up (one metaphorically) at the question. A petite young girl stood there, staring at Dai like he was crazy (which, from her point of view, he probably was). She was wearing a familiar looking school uniform – obviously a classmate – and was just about as cute as a button. Artfully messy blonde hair, big blue eyes set atop round, freckled cheeks. Definitely a winner.

"Takahashi-san!" Making pacifying motions wildly with his hands, Dai tried to put her at ease, though he probably only solidified the crazy theory. "N – no! I was just – just – talking to myself! Yeah! Just to myself!"

 _Smooth, Niwa._

"You were telling yourself to shut up?" She tilted her head to stare at him quizzically over the bridge of her nose. Adorable.

He rubbed a sheepish hand across the back of his neck. "Uh, yeah." Nervous laughter. "I guess."

 _So very, very smooth._

She stared at him for another moment, eyes as piercing and as blue as the sky. "Well, okay." She smiled, bright and wide (and dimples, really?), cheeks frosting with blush. "I wouldn't want there to be anything wrong with Niwa-san!" The blush deepened.

 _Well, now that's interesting…_

It was Dai's turn to blush. "Well, I – thank you, I'm fine. Thank you, Takahashi-san." He grinned.

"You – you can call me, Setsuna, if – if you want to." Man, this girl had the shy bunny look down pat. Glancing up at Niwa through her long lashes, cheeks stained like rose petals, she just about screamed _"I like you!"_

Without warning, Dai felt his heart trip into a staggering tango, the beats coming so hard and fast he was worried that she would hear it. "I – I –"

 _Come on, little Niwa, let me out…_

"If that's okay with you…. Dai-san."

And Dai exploded.

Leaving the poor girl there, stammering and blushing, he bolted. The familiar feeling that Dark had came to know so well, of emotion suffusing his tamer, that love bleeding into every pour, changing him, changing him back into himself – the sweet, sweet release at being able to breathe with his own lungs, see with his own eyes, hear his own voice speaking – it was the very best feeling in the world.

 _Hey! What just happened!_

"Well, _Dai-san_ ," the stress on his name made Dai's heart drum another staccato of beats, "it looks like you just met your Sacred Maiden!"

 _But – but – !_

"Aw, don't be a poor sport!" Dark didn't even try to lower his voice, the stares from passerby just making him give a languid stretch. "Now the real fun can begin!"

 _The real fun?_ Even in his thoughts he sounded uncertain and suspicious.

"The chase!" He grinned roguishly at a trio of women who were sending him interested glancing and when they all blushed and tittered, he winked. "The chase, little Niwa."

 _Stop calling me that!_

* * *

An hour later, Dark was still delightfully ensconced in his own body, since his latest tamer seemed remarkable susceptible to emotions. Every time Dark felt his heartbeat steady, his resolve to "man-up" firm, Dark would force himself to remember the throaty way Setsuna had said Dai's name, the unintentionally beguiling way she had looked when she glanced up at him through her lashes, cute and shy and feminine, and Dai would immediately start to hyperventilate again, sending a fresh wave of longing and heart wrenches though his body. And Dark would get to remain himself.

 _Come on, Dark! Let me out!_

"No, I'm having fun!" He glanced around the park (come to think of it, he guessed he was forcing Niwa to skip school, oh well). "I'm going stir crazy stuck in your head. I want to have some fun."

 _I'm sick of watching you hit on girls._ Dark could imagine Niwa in the corner of his mind, arms crossed, lips pursed as he pouted.

"Look, you found your Sacred Maiden, that means when you win her I go bye-bye." He felt the abrupt remorse and regret spilling from his mind. "So I mean to steal as much artwork and woo as many women as I can until you can actually speak to her without running away!" The regret shifted to irritation.

Dark strolled through the park, a jungle cat on the prowl, long-limbed and loose, eyes lazy and relaxed, his grin feral as he stalked through his prey. No one was safe from Dark. Women young and old were flirted with until they turned to putty in the force of his smile. Moms felt their uterus clench as he played with their children. Teenagers swooned as he picked up a puppy.

"You're certainly making yourself at home in there." Dark stood with the kind of slow grace that only generations of evolution can procure, and turned to face Hiwatari Kai, also, apparently, skipping school (probably to stalk Dark – Hiwataris, really). The Hikari gestured around them. "Are there any women left for the rest of us?"

A slow smirk. "Hiwatari. What do you care for women? If I were you I'd be hesitant to do anything that might let out the monster in me."

 _Monster?_

A frown. "That may be so, but don't you think you've taken up enough of Dai-san's day?" He seemed to be trying to look at Niwa through Dark's eyes.

"Ah, but it's so nice to stretch my legs! And Dai-chan is still so flustered I couldn't leave if I tried!"

A head tilt. The movement was so Satoshi that for a moment Dark was thrown back in time. "I would not be so quick to judge another's emotions if I were you, Dark."

Dark paused, expression hardening. "What is that supposed to mean?"

An elegant shrug. "Simply that someday you will surely be in the same place. It's statistics." He turned to leave, giving an offhanded wave over his shoulder. "Send my regards to my cousin."

Dark watched him go for only a moment, before something slammed into the back of his head and someone ran into him from behind. The force send him sprawling to the ground, air whooshing out of him. With a vague sense of detachment, he noticed a Frisbee on the grass beside him. There was a weight on his back and as he rolled himself over in a tangle of limbs and hair, he realized it was a young woman.

"Ow, that really hurt."

Dark felt the slow clenching low in chest with trepidation. He couldn't speak, the air had been shoved from him with the force of his fall and he couldn't seem to take in enough air to get it back.

Long blonde hair was draped over his shoulders, tangling with his iridescent locks. He could see porcelain skin, chiseled cheeks and a pert nose. The mouth was speaking to him, asking him something, but his eyes only saw the lips: smooth and full, a perfect bow. A long fingered hand (piano player hands – pickpocket hands) grasped him by the chin, sending shockwaves through his chest, and tilted his face up. She was asking him –

Her eyes were blue. Blue like the sky. Blue as ocean water. Blue as snowdrifts. Blue as chips of ice. Her face was haloed against the sky by the flare of her hair.

" – alright?"

Dark blinked, once, closing his eyes, shaking his head to try and clear it of the fog, to try and take control of his own betraying body. He couldn't breathe –

" – so sorry – wasn't looking – thing I can do – concussion?"

Why couldn't be breathe?

"Hey – hey! Don't fade out on me!" Two cool hands framed his face, covering his ears, blocking out all the noise of the park, all her words, and pulled his face up again, forcing him to look at her, only her –

She was still sprawled on top of him, pressed together chest to hip, legs tangled messily. Dark could feel each rise and fall of her chest as she breathed. He could feel the ba-dum ba-dum of her heartbeat pressed against his rip cage.

His heart suddenly flared to life, stirred up like a cheap martini, beating fast enough to hurt, beating a drumroll inside his ribs, waiting for something to let go -

Those eyes were staring straight through him. His lips parted, but he couldn't find the words – still couldn't draw a breath. Those eyes were watching him, all blue concern and cerulean sympathy –

Dark felt the clench inside his heart let go–

He felt the sweet, sweet release -

It felt like he was falling.


	4. Chapter 04 Stage

**Title:** Chasing the Dream  
 **Genre:** Romance  
 **Rating:** T  
 **Pairing:** Dark x OC, Daisuke x Riku, Satoshi x Risa  
 **Spoilers:** N/A  
 **Summary:** They used to say that if man was meant to fly, he'd have wings. But he did fly. He discovered that he had to.  
 **Word Count:** 1,771  
 **Warnings:** I'm pretending the anime ending never happened. So this is going the based off the abrupt ending of the manga and make assumptions as to what happened from there.

 **Disclaimer:** Not mine. Summary is from Star Trek: The Original Series.

 **A/N:** Dark deserves love. And if I'm being completely honest with you, I never liked Risa (other stories involving her notwithstanding). So I'm not pairing her with him here, and only for sake of avoiding two OC characters am I putting her with my Satoshi.

* * *

 _Dark?! … Dark! … Da-_ "rk!"

Niwa's voice was faint at first, coming from the far reaches of Dark's mind. Then, suddenly, it was coming from his own mouth and Dark felt, with a vague sense of detachment, that maybe he wasn't in his own body anymore, but Niwa's.

"Dark, answer me!"

 _Ni… wa…?_ He felt the relief surge through his tamer, felt Dai slump to the ground in whatever alley he had escaped to, felt the hard press of brick against Niwa's back through the filter of their bond. _What…_

"You were talking to that girl, the one who ran into you, and then," Dai was struggling to remember the feeling that had filled him. Happiness. Fear. Confusion. Pressure. Release. "I knew I was turning into me again, so I ran." A sigh. "But I couldn't hear you. You wouldn't answer me."

Out of the fog of his memory, Dark remembered. He remembered ice chip eyes, and the feel of hip bones and breasts pushing down on him through only the thin material of clothing. He remembered the sunlight and the vanilla smell of hair and skin. _I …_

"Do you have a Sacred Maiden, too?"

The question brought Dark to a screeching halt inside Dai's mind. A Sacred Maiden? No… Maidens were for the Niwa and Hikari boys. Remnants of a generations old curse that had somehow gotten warped and twisted until is affected their feelings of love. Well, in the Niwa. Dark never was really sure what the deal with his counterpart and tamers was, he could only speculate that it too had to do with love. But Sacred Maidens were not for Dark, not for Krad. Women who loved you were for boys of flesh and blood, boys who would live on with that love, get to experience it and savor it. Sacred Maidens were for the tamers not the tamed. But even so…

"Because I think that might have been her."

Even so it was nice to dream…

 _No, little Niwa, the Sacred Maiden is for you to find. I was only surprised._

Dark could feel the skepticism, harsh and demanding, pulsing at him. He didn't need a mirror to know that Dai was frowning. "Yeah, okay, but that felt an awful lot like what _I_ felt like when Tak- Setsu –" He stumbled on, forcing his heart to slow, his face to pale, "like what happened to me. Are you _sure_ you don't have a Maiden?"

A long slow pause. _I'm sure, Dai_.

This time the pause was full of expectation, waiting, "She sure was pretty, huh, Dark?"

And when Dark blushed to the roots of his hair, so apparent to Dai even inside his head, when Dai's heart began to beat double time in response to Dark's emotions, all Dai did was laugh and laugh.

* * *

 _ **Phantom Thief Dark will appear to steal the Beauty Sleep at 7 PM**_

… _**Dark will appear to steal the Roses of the Gods at 7 PM**_

… _**Dark will appear to steal the Moon Sapphire…**_

… _**appear to steal the King's Ransom…**_

… _**steal the Diamond Dogs…**_

* * *

Months passed in a blur. Life with the Niwas was everything Dark remembered it to be: His tamer's parents pushing him to woo his Sacred Maiden. His tamer blushing and stuttering and failing every time he tried, always turning into Dark and leaving her standing there. Dark, for his part, had tried to force the woman in the park to the back of his mind. To pretend that he was shocked and not nervous. That it was surprise and not love that made his heart beat that fast, that made his breath hitch. It was easy to pretend that was the case, when he assumed that he would never see her again.

But Fate was not that kind.

"Oh, Dai-san! I just remembered!" Setsuna paused mid-step and turned to face Dai, while the walked to class together. "My sister said she saw you in the park a few weeks ago, she said you were acting weird." She tilted her head, birdlike and concerned. "Are you alright?"

"Your sister?" Dai was so confused that it helped him control the steadily increased beating of his heart.

"Um, yeah," rifling through her school bag, Setsuna's hand emerged with a crinkled photograph. "Takara, my sister. She graduated last year," she finished proudly.

As Dai took the picture, Dark felt the bottom drop out of his stomach. It was her – the girl from the park. In the photograph, she was laughing, head thrown back in an open and honest display of mirth, light glinting off of her hair like it was gold-specked. With Dai handed the picture back to Setsuna, Dark wanted to strangle him. He wanted to stare at the smooth column of her throat, pale and swanlike. He wanted to see the crinkles at the corners of her eyes caused by her laughter. He wanted to watch the light play off her skin. He wanted –

"I remember her, yeah. She's your sister?"

Setsuna nodded eagerly. "Yeah, my big sister! I was talking about you," two nervous pairs of eyes glances away, two sets of cheeks blushed, two hearts beat just a little faster, "and showed her a picture from the yearbook and she said she saw you in the park." Setsuna made a cute little moe with her lips. "But she said you ran away."

Sheepishly Dai laughed and rubbed the back of his neck. "Uh, yeah, something came up." Dark felt, with a sense of dread, a curl of mischief worm its way through Niwa. "Did you sister say anything else about that day?" He tried, and failed, to ask the next question nonchalantly. "Did she meet anyone interesting?"

 _Niwa…_

"Actually, yeah! How did you know that?" Dai just grinned at her in boyish charm. "Well, actually, she didn't _say_ she met anyone, but a sister can tell!"

Dai's smiled unfurled at the edges, and Dark felt his hold over the body firm until he could almost taste the transformation.

 _Just a little bit more…_

"When I asked who else she met she got all nervous!" Setsuna smiled, big and wide and happy at Dai, whose heart leapt at brightness of it.

 _Almost there…_

"Is that so?"

Setsuna's smile softened. _Ba-dum ba-dum ba-dum_ "Yeah, she wouldn't admit it, but I could tell. Whoever she met – Takara thought was really handsome."

And inside his head Dai laughed long and low, just for Dark, because in the corner of Dai's mind that Dark had claimed for himself, admit a flurry of heartbeats, underneath the chest that was clenched too tight, breath too hitched, a brief glimmer of hope began to grow. And Dai could sense it there, even if Dark couldn't.

"Ne, Setsuna-san, do you want to go to the circus with me next week?"

* * *

It seemed forever for Friday to arrive, only one more day until Dai's big date with his Sacred Maiden.

 _School is as dull and boring as ever_ , Dark thought. _And it's pretty unfair that I have to go through this all the time. Lame._

"If you've done it so much, then why don't you _help_ _me_?!" Came the hissed reply.

Holding up his hands in surrender, Dark shook his head. _I'm not saying I paid attention! Who cares about the quadratic formula anyway?_

"I do if it's on the next test!"

"Niwa-san, is there something you'd like to share with the class?"

Head shooting up, red-faced with embarrassment, Dai shook his head frantically, trying to ignore the sniggers of classmates and the thief inside his head. "N- no, sensei."

"Alright then, why don't you come up here and work on this next problem on the board?"

His head slammed into the desk.

* * *

"A word, cousin?"

Niwa glanced up, eyes brightening as Hiwatari motioned him over. "Hey Kei-san, what's up?"

"You and your other half have certainly been busy lately," he said as they fell into step together. They lived mere blocks from one another, a situation which Dark never failed to complain about – vehemently and loudly – at any opportunity.

 _What's it to you, Hiwatari?_

"Yeah, I think dad missed him and likes seeing him out and about," he shrugged, even as Dark brushed away the warm rush of friendship so he could listen, "And I think he's bored."

"Your father?"

They paused at the school entrance, holding the door open for a gaggle of underclassmen, who giggled and made side-eyes at Hiwatari, who ignored them. "No, Da- my other half."

 _Hey!_

"Ah." Dai could make neither heads nor tails of that noncommittal sound, so remained silent. "How are things with Takahashi-san?" When Dai sputtered, Kei merely smiled. "My mother spoke to your mother," he explained.

"Oh – yeah well, it's going good." Nervous laughter. "We're going to the circus tomorrow."

"Is that so?" One slim brow arched in the Hiwatari version of surprise. "Well, good luck to you. The sooner your Sacred Maiden returns your love, the sooner I can stop worrying about my own other half appearing." His gaze seemed to slide past Dai's and into Dark's instead. "And good luck with your own Sacred Maiden, Phantom Thief." With an enigmatic smile ( _damn you and your mouth Harada twins!_ )

Dark sulked in the tiny corner of Niwa's mind that belonged to him. Takara Takahashi was not his Sacred Maiden. No matter how much Dark might hope, or wish, or want that it was just that simple for him. That if he found his Sacred Maiden, he could live his own life, be his own man. But that was not the way life had been designed for him. For the Niwa, yes. Possibly for the Hikari.

Love was not for the Phantom Thief. He only stole the hearts, he never got to keep them for himself.


	5. Chapter 05 Requiem

**Title:** Chasing the Dream  
 **Genre:** Romance  
 **Rating:** T  
 **Pairing:** Dark x OC, Daisuke x Riku, Satoshi x Risa  
 **Spoilers:** N/A  
 **Summary:** They used to say that if man was meant to fly, he'd have wings. But he did fly. He discovered that he had to.  
 **Word Count:** 2,532  
 **Warnings:** I'm pretending the anime ending never happened. So this is going the based off the abrupt ending of the manga and make assumptions as to what happened from there.

 **Disclaimer:** Not mine. Summary is from Star Trek: The Original Series.

 **A/N:** Dark deserves love. And if I'm being completely honest with you, I never liked Risa (other stories involving her notwithstanding). So I'm not pairing her with him here, and only for sake of avoiding two OC characters am I putting her with my Satoshi.

* * *

During the day, Friday seemed to drag on forever. School, Hiwatari, homework. As soon as the sun set, though, Dai started to hyperventilate in the way only a teenage boy could on the night before his first date could. Vocally and loudly.

"What if she doesn't show up?!" He was pulling at his hair. "What if _she does_ and I say something stupid?! What if I mess this up forever?"

 _There's literally nothing you can do at your age to mess this up forever. Trust me._

"WHAT IF I TURN INTO YOU?!"

 _Now that I can't really help you with._ A smirk. _In fact, I might actually make that worse for you_ , Dark drawled, forcing images of Setsuna's sweet, smiling face into Dai's mind.

"Stop it! Stop it! Stop it!"

 _Alright, alright, Dai-chan, geez,_ Dark whined, a finger in his ear. _Don't let her see how crazy you are._

"WHAT?!"

* * *

The stressful night notwithstanding (Dai woke in a cold sweat every few hours to panic some more, imagining increasingly off-the-wall scenarios that could happen), Saturday morning dawned bright and clear. It was an absolutely perfect day for a date, and Dai was alternating between frigid terror and hopeful optimism. It was giving Dark whiplash.

 _Just calm down, kiddo. I've been on hundreds of dates._ Smugness oozed through every line. _I'll help you out._

Dai paused mid tirade. "You – you will?"

Dark smiled in parental warmth. _Course I will, little Niwa. That's what I'm here for._

Dai grinned. "I thought you were here to steal artwork and woo women."

 _Well, that, too_. And he laughed loud and long.

* * *

Dark hadn't been to the circus since Dai's great, great, great grandfather had needed to steal the _Crown of Aphrodite_ , which it just so happened, was being used as a costume piece for the trick riders. No matter what else had changed in the generations since then, it appeared the circus was a timeless entity and hardly changed at all.

There were face painters and balloon artists and mimes milling about as the crowd waited to go in. Parents were hoisting their children up on their shoulders, helping them get a glimpse over fences of the elephants, holding their hands in lines to ride the camels and horses. The air smelled of buttered popcorn, sticky sweet cotton candy, and animals. Dark could hear the familiar and nostalgic sounds of shrill, childish laughter, the growling of big cats, the barking of dogs. It brought back memories of an entire lifetime ago. Generations ago.

"Dai-san!"

Niwa turned at the exuberant voice and, though his heart tripped into a fast-paced jig, he swallowed his nerves and smiled back. Dark probably could have taken advantage of the emotion – a little memory here, a little whispered words there – and caused Dai to transform, but he was distracted. Because standing next to Dai's Sacred Maiden, was Takahashi Takara. And Dark suddenly couldn't think about anything anymore.

God, she was beautiful. In a classical, refined, Renaissance painting kind of way. All pale skin and long-limbed, hair a golden halo, and eyes flecks of jewels. When she smiled at her younger sister, is was like watching the sun rise, slow and bright and happy.

"Setsuna-san! Hi!" Nervous laughter bubbled from Dai's throat. "And hello Takahashi-san," he said politely to the elder sibling.

"Oh, come on now, Dai-san, you can call me Takara. After all, Takahashi is Setsuna's name, too!"

"Okay then… Takara-san!"

When Takara leaned down to smile into Dai's face and shake his hand playfully, Dark noticed the lightest spattering of freckles across the bridge of her nose, like a brush full of stardust had been swept across her cheeks, and Dark lost his hold on the transformation. His fingers twitched with urge to brush across those cheeks, connect those dots, make her blush and stutter…

Dai coughed in embarrassment as Dark's thoughts reached his mind. "Um, so what are you doing here, Takara-san?" suddenly realizing how that sounded, he blanched, "Not that I mind – I mean it's a date, so I kinda do – but no! I meant – "

He was interrupted as Takara laughed loudly, a deep throaty sound that sent Dark's pulse soaring, made his stomach clench. When she threw back in head in a perfect mirror of the photograph, it made Dark pant with the urge to trace the column of her throat with his hands, to outline the points of her collarbone with his tongue, to nip at the swell of her br-

" – just here as Setsuna's chauffer. I'll be hanging around, but no worries, I won't bother you two on your date!" She winked at the pair of them. Beaming a smile at the couple, she started walking off. "I'll be in the stands by the tigers if you guys need me! Have fun!"

When she blew her sister a kiss, Dark had only one thought…

 _I have to see her._

* * *

"No."

 _But Dai –_

"It's _my_ date!"

 _Only for a –_

"No!"

Niwa was in a bathroom stall, not being able to take Dark's babbling in his head about _please can I be let out for just a little bit I miss the circus_. Dai wasn't stupid, he knew exactly who Dark wanted to go see. But this was his first date with Setsuna-san.

 _Daisuke would have let me…_

"I don't care!"

 _Oh, this is ridiculous!_ And with that, Dark forced himself to start thinking about Setsuna: how her pale cheeks blushed at the slightest provocation, how she glanced at Niwa from underneath full lashes, how her smile was bubbly and warm, how her hand felt intertwined with Dai's –

With a rumble of heartbeats and a pop, Dark was suddenly standing in the stall as Dai screamed inside his head about him being a traitor. Dark just grinned. _Don't be such a poor sport, little Niwa, I won't ruin your date._

* * *

After tracking down Setsuna, Dark offered an explanation for Niwa's absence. "Yeah, sorry, I ran into him near the bathrooms and mentioned that my mom was worried about something she had heard from his mom so he ran off to call her." Dark smiled sheepishly, a perfect combination of boyish charm and awkward apology. "He shouldn't be that long."

Setsuna, with a smile, waved off his apology. "No, no, no, it's fine! Thank you for telling me, that's so sweet of Dai-san to be worried about his mom and to send you to let me know. I'll be fine!" She grinned. "The trapeze act is about to start!"

"Well, you enjoy, I'm gonna go track down my own wayward friends!"

 _Dark, you can't just leave here there!_

But he was already walking away. "She'll be fine. She's got that big bag of peanuts and the show is about to start. She won't even notice you're gone." A shock of golden hair caught his eye and he zeroed in on it. "My turn for a date now."

 _Gee, Dark, should you, I don't know_ ASK _a girl before declaring yourself on a date with her?_

"Shut up."

"Beg pardon?"

When the objects of Dark's daydreams turned at his muttered outburst, it was only years of practice that kept him from making a fool of himself. "What's up?" He chuckled. "I think we ran into each other in the park a few weeks ago? I thought I recognized you … " Recognition bloomed in her eyes. "I just wanted to apologize for leaving you." Dark rolled his eyes. "I had been planning on saying you took my breath away, but I heard it just now in my head and that sound's stupid." He grinned. "But, something like that…"

He watched with hawk-like focus as a blush blossomed on her cheeks. "Oh, it was my fault, really I should be the one apologizing." She held out her hand. "I'm Takara… Takahashi, for what that's worth. But since I mowed you down in a public park, I think that already makes us friends."

"Dark…" He reached out his own hand. "Mousy. Nice to officially meet you Takara-san." When their hand touched Dark thought for a moment he had transformed, but no, that was still his hand holding hers, still her fingertips pressed against his pulse, palm to palm. It was still his finger pads feeling the feathering of her pulse beneath them, the steady then faster _ba-dum ba-dum ba-dum_.

 _Dark focus buddy!_

He blinked, realized he was still awkwardly holding her hand between them, handshake long since over. Much to his mortification and Dai's amusement, Dark blushed to the roots of his hair, backing away quickly. "S – sorry!" Did he really just stutter? What was _wrong_ with him?!

 _Sacred Maiden_ , came the singsong response from inside his head.

"So your name is Dark, huh? Like the Phantom Thief?" _Oh, my God, I'm such an idiot._ "That's pretty cool. Your parents fans of his or something?"

"Uh, yeah, something like that." They had started walking around the stalls without really thinking about it, talking about school (Takara wanted to be a teacher, Dark said he was looking to be a museum curator), their families, their lives. It was… nice. With some sense of relief, Dark realized he hadn't turned back into Dai yet. Some sort of miracle, he guessed.

 _Are you kidding? This is GREAT!_ Dai crowed. _You're a mess! It's hilarious. Look! She's smiling at you – go on and blush again like a real ladies' man!_

Much to his chagrin, she was smiling at him and he was blushing, the red stain seeming to be a permanent fixture on his face. Maybe meeting like this was a poor idea -

"I love the circus, don't you?" She turned her megawatt smile in his direction.

\- no screw that, it was a great idea.

She was smiling at him. Just him. She wasn't in love with _Dark_ the way Risa was. She was just happy to be with Dark. The real him. Not because he was a Thief or famous. She was talking to him. Smiling at him. Laughing with him. It was taking every ounce of self-control not to pull her close, to press his lips to hers, to see if he could make her tip her head back in blissful surrender…

"I love it more with you."

Her smile froze as her spoke without thinking, just blurted out the words. But he couldn't take them back, not when they were true. She was so… everything. Beautiful and graceful. Smart (God she was smart, smarter than him) and sweet and kind and happy and good and – and – she was smiling at him.

"I… I like it better here with you, too Dark-san."

She was looking at him from under the fringe of her lashes, all adorable shyness and blossoming happiness and Dark snapped. He wrapped his hand around her wrist and gave it a tug. She tumbled into him, mouth open in shock, and, with a groan that came from deep within him, he pressed their mouths together.

Heaven. Bliss. Pleasure. All shooting down his spine at the speed of light. She was the perfect height for him to pull her against him, crush her hands between them where they bunched into fists in his shirt – and then pulled him closer. Thank God. He groaned again, not caring at the people looking (some appalled, some with knowing smiles), and pulled her closer, but still not close enough. He wanted to feel skin on skin. He wanted to sink into her. He wanted her to melt into him. He wanted … he wanted …

He pulled away from her with a gasp, pressing a kiss to the panting corner of her mouth, then the other corner. Then he let his forehead slump against hers, let their mingled breaths pant together. He smiled, slow and satisfied. "Well, this might be a little late now, but… would you like to go on a date with me?" Though his eyes were closed, he could feel her grin against him. He could feel the laugh bubbling in her even before it burst forth between them, high and bright.

"Yeah, sure, why not."

* * *

 _Dark – Setsuna-san!_

Sending waves of reassurance through the bond, Dark waved off Dai. He knew he had to relinquish control, but not yet, not so soon...

"Dark." Cursing his luck, he turned to face Hiwatari. "I didn't expect to see you here." He gave a fleeting glance at the girl beside Dark.

"Hiwatari. What's up? You here on a date?"

"Unlike you and Dai-san, I have no interest in dating." He titled his chin at Takara. "No offense, miss."

"You know, Dai-san?" She asked.

"Indeed. I was actually looking for him. There's a matter I must disc-"

"Takara, have you seen Dai-san – oh! Hello!" Setsuna appeared suddenly, obviously looking for her wayward date, and pulled up short at the site of her sister with one of her classmates and someone she had never seen before. "I'm sorry, am I interrupting?" So polite. "Hello, Hiwatari-san."

"Takahashi-san, I must apologize. I delayed Dai-san on his way back to you." Dark focused on his abruptly. "There is a lost item here, _Requiem for a Dream_ , and I thought he might be able to help me find it. It's very special piece of artwork of a poppy field, very large."

 _Is that one of the Hikari artworks?_

Dark nodded for Dai's benefit. "I'm sure he's still looking for it, Hiwatari," he said, with a pointed stare at his tamer's cousin, who nodded in apparent relief.

"If you see him, tell him when he finds it to make sure –

Suddenly, the lights dimmed, and on the stage, a backdrop rolled down from the ceiling. It was a beautiful landscape – a meadow full of flowers, in the middle of a forest.

"Hey! That's what Dai-san is looking for!" And Setsuna took off.

"Wait!" And there went Takara after her.

"Stop!" And Dark immediately after her.

So went Setsuna came to an abrupt halt before the painting, looking around for her wayward date, Takara slammed on her brakes to avoid hitting her, but was too slow. She slammed into her sister, and, though Dark reached out a hand to grab her, her momentum pulled them both forward. They tumbled into the painting, and, with a flash, disappeared into the ink and paper.

"- make sure you don't touch it." Hiwatari finished to no one.


	6. Chapter 06 Left Behind

**Title:** Chasing the Dream  
 **Genre:** Romance  
 **Rating:** T  
 **Pairing:** Dark x OC, Daisuke x Riku, Satoshi x Risa  
 **Spoilers:** N/A  
 **Summary:** They used to say that if man was meant to fly, he'd have wings. But he did fly. He discovered that he had to.  
 **Word Count:** 1,638  
 **Warnings:** I'm pretending the anime ending never happened. So this is going the based off the abrupt ending of the manga and make assumptions as to what happened from there.

 **Disclaimer:** Not mine. Summary is from Star Trek: The Original Series.

 **A/N:** Dark deserves love. And if I'm being completely honest with you, I never liked Risa (other stories involving her notwithstanding). So I'm not pairing her with him here, and only for sake of avoiding two OC characters am I putting her with my Satoshi.

* * *

The air smelled like flowers. The scent was so thick and heavy with it, it felt like honeyed wine inside his nose, choking him with the heady aroma of them. Sugared bits of pollen fluttered past his nose like gnats. It was overpowering. Made him want to rest. Made him want to sleep. Made him want to lay down in the blossoms and do nothing but dream –

Dark's eyes snapped open, memories pouring into his mind like water.

The circus. Hiwatari. The painting.

Shit.

Forcing himself to stand, he groaned when the movement caused joints to creak, muscles to tense. How long had he been asleep? Minutes? Hours? Days? And Setsuna and Takara? Where were they –

"Dai?" Pulled up short, by the site before him, he hesitated. Sprawled in a field of red flowers, were both Takahashi sisters and his tamer. In a separate body. Shaking his head, he went first to Dai, shaking him by the shoulder to waken him.

He came awake with a start and a mumble, eyes darting around before settling on Dark's intense face. "D – Dark? You're you!" He pat himself down. "And I'm me! What - ?" Eyes grew big and wide. "Are we dead? Oh my God, we're dead aren't we? My poor mom – and Setsuna-san!"

"Dai! Calm down!" Dark gave his shoulder a shake. "The girls are over there." He gestured. "We need to wake them up. If they sleep too long, they'll stay asleep forever."

As Dai went to Setsuna to gently prod her awake, Dark turned his own… what? Maiden?

Takara was as beautiful in repose as she was in life: elegant, graceful – limbs seemingly draped with angelic artistry, even though he knew she had been tossed here as suddenly as the rest of them. Her lashes were twin crescents against the curves of her cheeks and he reached out to her, brushing his fingertips against them before sliding into her hair to tuck one golden tress behind her ear. "Takara," he whispered, then again, louder. "Wake up."

With a soft sigh that sent his pulse racing, her eyelashes fluttered open, focusing with blue intensity onto his, making his breath catch in his throat. "Dark?" Her breathy voice (a morning voice, a voice after a night together, low) asked, before her eyes darted around in confusion. Blue sky. Flowers. Trees. She sat up abruptly, sending Dark scrambling backwards to avoid a forehead collision. "Where the hell are we?!" Dark heard the echo of a similar statement from Setsuna as Dai woke her. He sighed.

"It's kind of a long story." He glanced sideways at Niwa. "And I guess we should probably start at the beginning."

* * *

Two pairs of blues eyes stared intensely, making two young men fidget. "So let me get this straight," Takara said. "You," (pointing to Niwa), "are cursed to turn into him," (pointing at Dark), "to steal things." If Niwa thought it was strange that Dark immediately told Takara (and her sister), his real identity, he didn't say. "And you turn into him because…"

"Genetics," answered Dark firmly. Well, no need to reveal _everything_ just yet. Poor little Niwa would die of mortification if Dark told her that they transformed when Dai felt love.

"Uh-huh." Narrowed eyes. "And you've been doing this for a long time." It wasn't really a question, but he answered affirmatively anyway. "And Hiwatari – whom I just met – his family once created real pieces of art, that you (first steal) and then seal." Another affirmative. "And where we are right now is…"

Dai turned to him as well, since, for this part, he was at the same loss the sisters were at. Dark heaved another sigh, stretching out his long limbs before answering. "This is _Requiem for a Dream_. The last I heard it had been destroyed by the Nazis in World War II, but," he waved around at their surroundings, "obviously not. It's a very strange piece of work. The Hikari – Hiwatari," he amended, "who created it had a terrible life. Death of family, wife, children. He lost his farm and his livelihood when he fell into a depression. He was a mess." Dark stared off into the distance for a while, looking at their surroundings. "So he created a place where he could live forever in a dream of his perfect world." Plucking a few flowers, he continued, "These flowers will put you to sleep. Sleep too long and you sleep forever. Eternal good dreams. But you will never wake again." He stared pointedly at Dai. "We have to find the Hikari and destroy him."

Niwa nodded. "And I'm sure Kei-san is trying to help us from the other side!"

Dark huffed. "If you say so." He turned back to Takara, pleased and frazzled that she was still staring at him intently. "We'll need to look out for each other, make sure we don't start falling asleep." She was still staring at him, and he could see the thoughts swirling around behind her eyes, wondering if she could trust him, wondering if he was telling the truth. "Hey," he reached out to grab her hand, "you have to trust me. Please." He needed her to trust him, so he could keep her safe.

One more long moment of those eyes looking into his soul, before she sighed, and her expression melted into a soft smile. "I do." His heart leapt. "I don't know why, but I do."

* * *

"This is ridiculous!" Dark was fuming. They had walked the entire field and a small way into the forest and so far had found nothing. "He has to be here somewhere!" It had been hours. They were all tired, but too afraid to sleep, lest they never wake up. They were hungry and thirsty. And Dark, for one, was going stir crazy.

"Maybe we should split up?"

Dark was already shaking his head as Setsuna spoke. "Too dangerous. And how will we keep track of each other?"

"We'll just have to start over," Dai said, reasonably. "Maybe we missed something."

"I don't think we did." He was frowning to himself, glaring around the picturesque scene. "Maybe I missed something about the story?"

"We could – "

"What's that?"

At Takara's sudden question, all eyes followed the line of her outstretched arm to where it was pointing at a tear in the sky. A steady stream of light was pulsing through it, and drifting through the light were …

… Feathers?

"Hiwatari," Dark muttered.

"Hurry up, I can't keep this open all day for you, you know." Hiwatari's voice echoed through the rip, and spurned them all into action.

Racing forward, Dark kept one eye on Dai and one eye on Takara, so when Setsuna stumbled, and Takara tripped trying to avoid her, he stopped immediately, to urge them on. But when Takara tried to continue, he leg buckled beneath her, causing her to reach out and steady herself on Dark's arm.

"My ankle," Takara grimaced. "I think I sprained it." She was rubbing the offending limp, as she leaned on him for support.

"We need to hurry. I don't know how much power it's costing Hiwatari to reach into here for us, but it's got to be a lot." Dark gaged the remaining distance, before turning to his tamer. "Take Setsuna-san and run, make sure she gets through. We'll be right behind you."

"But – "

Dark held up a finger, "Nope! Go on, rescue your damsel in distress, little Niwa." He grinned as both youngsters blushed, but Dai nodded, and, grabbing her hand in his, tugged his Sacred Maiden off in a sprint towards home. Dark turned to Takara, who was trying to stand on one foot, and grinned roguishly. "I knew it wouldn't be too long before I had you in my arms again."

"What does that – " She shrieked in surprise when Dark leaned down to press one arm against the back of her knees, making her legs collapse, and causing her to fall bridal style into his arms.

"Let's go then," and when he took off running, Dark took great delight in the way she clutched against him.

Dark could see that Dai and Setsuna had reached the exit and he could see Niwa helping her through before turning to look for Dark. But Dark could also see that their way out was starting to close.

"Dark!" Niwa looked frantic, torn between the desire to leave and make sure Setsuna arrived back unscathed, and the impulse to run to Dark and help.

"Niwa, go!" Dark started to slow, knowing he would never make it, that the closer he got the more likely it was that Dai would come back for him. "Help Hiwatari. We'll work on destroying the painting from in here." _Please go,_ Dark thought to himself, _please save yourself_. _I won't forgive myself if you get trapped somewhere, too..._

"But – "

"Help my sister!"

Looking between the two standing there, Takara cradled in Dark's arms, night and day silhouettes, his eyes hardened with resolve. He nodded. "I'll come back for you – I promise!"

And he turned and leapt through the rip, right as it zipped closed, leaving the sky the same perfect expanse of cobalt as before.

Leaving Dark and Takara trapped in the Requiem.


	7. Chapter 07 For a Dream

**Title:** Chasing the Dream  
 **Genre:** Romance  
 **Rating:** T  
 **Pairing:** Dark x OC, Daisuke x Riku, Satoshi x Risa  
 **Spoilers:** N/A  
 **Summary:** They used to say that if man was meant to fly, he'd have wings. But he did fly. He discovered that he had to.  
 **Word Count:** 2,459  
 **Warnings:** I'm pretending the anime ending never happened. So this is going the based off the abrupt ending of the manga and make assumptions as to what happened from there.

 **Disclaimer:** Not mine. Summary is from Star Trek: The Original Series.

 **A/N:** Dark deserves love. And if I'm being completely honest with you, I never liked Risa (other stories involving her notwithstanding). So I'm not pairing her with him here, and only for sake of avoiding two OC characters am I putting her with my Satoshi.

* * *

With nothing before them but a sea of red flowers and the blue, blue sky, there was nothing to say that wasn't already being thought. They were trapped here, until Hiwatari regained enough strength to open another door (unlikely to happen any time soon) or until they discovered the creator of this world and destroyed him (not likely with Takara's sprained ankle.)

Speaking of which…

"Um, you can put me down now… Dark."

When Dark glanced down, he sucked in his breath. Takara was still nestled in his arms, she was so slight he had almost forgotten. Her hands were fisted in the material of his shirt, the press of fingertips just noticeable through the fabric. Her gaze was slanted away from him, but he could see the bloom of an embarrassed blush on her cheek. Even though he was nervous with her closeness, he felt a purely male surge of pride burst through him at the sight.

"I doubt you could walk, Takara. We should find somewhere to rest for a bit while we come up with a plan. Besides," he jiggled her in his arms, grinning as she shrieked and threw her arms around his neck to hold on, "you're not heavy. I could carry you all day." Her blush returned, and with a wink, he turned and began the trek back to where they had first arrived her.

They traveled in silence for a few moments, before Dark, unable to help himself, glanced down at her, where she was steadfastly refusing to look at him. "Ne, Takara, what's wrong?"

"Nothing." She still wasn't looking at him.

"If you say so." When she snapped her head around to glare at the flippant, disbelieving tone he had affected, he beamed at her.

"Stop that."

His smile grew cheek-achingly wide. "Stop what?" _Stop playing with fire, you idiot._

"That." She pointed at him as well she could in such close quarters. "Being charming." She frowned, her lips a sexy pout. "It's not fair."

Dark knew he shouldn't, he _really_ shouldn't, but he couldn't help himself. He winked. "Aw, Takara- _chan_ ," (a blush), "I think you're charming, too."

They were barely at the outreaches of the poppy field, just walking through the small spattering of blooms, which was a good thing, because Dark tripped and would have crashed to the ground at Takara's sudden move. As it was, he still stumbled, but managed to hold himself up against a nearby tree, when Takara leaned up until her breath was ghosting hot and intimate in his ear. "Do you now?" And then she pressed a kiss against the line of his chin, smile curving into his skin.

 _Oh, shit_ …

Bark pressed threw his shirt, tearing skin as he slid down the tree on legs suddenly turned to jelly. But he didn't feel it. He didn't feel the hard ground underneath him either. He felt Takara settle more firmly into his lap and press a kiss of teeth and tongue against his neck, drawing a line of fire down his throat. His arms hauled her to him. Someone was groaning deep in the chest, and Dark was startled to realize it was him,

She pressed a kiss against the dip between his collarbones. He panted. "So, you think, I'm charming, huh?" She bit his Adam's apple, then soothed it with her tongue. He shifted his hips. "That's good to know." Her nose bumped his chin and she suddenly slid up his body to stare into his eyes. " _Dark_."

When she sighed out his name in a voice gone heavy and seductive, Dark gave a strangled cry, unable to sit there any longer. He smashed his mouth into hers, no grace, no finesse, no suave Phantom Thief. Just a man on the brink with a beautiful girl.

With his arms still wrapped around her he kept moving forward, until he tumbled her to the ground, until they were sprawled out in the riot of flowers at the edge of the field, until he could press himself against the entire line of her body and drown in her.

Lips murmured against her, speaking nonsense, speaking nothing. When her legs fell open naturally, he practically purred, and settled himself more firmly against the cradle of her hips, feeling like he would die from the sheer perfect agony of it all. His hands danced up her arms so they could grab fistfuls of that perfect hair, so he could press his face into the curve of skin where her cheek met her throat and breathe in the heady floral scent of her.

 _Why?_ The thought would not leave his mind, it bounced around in his skull even as her own hands traveled to his shoulders, fingers digging in with pleasure/pain. _How?_ When he pressed a kiss to her throat, she turned her head, extending the entire swan-like column to his hungry gaze. _Why do I feel this ache around her?_ She was making mewling noises low in her throat, making his heart clench, making him press into her unconsciously harder. _How do I feel this so quickly?_ He wanted to melt into her. He wanted all of her. Everything. He wanted to see her come undone beneath him, for him, because of him. _What is this?_

A breeze blew the sickly sweet scent of flora past his nose and, with a start, Dark remembered where he was. This wasn't right. With a bone-deep feeling of regret, he softened his kissed, loosened his grip on her hair, and began to run his hands down in arms in a gesture more soothing than arousing. More calming then stimulating. "Takara…"

When her head slowly turned towards him, her eyes were glazed with need, pupils blown wide with want, the blue only a thin line. She smiled slow and dreamy, flushed with desire, eyes seeing Dark and wanting him. "Hm?"

His gut clenched with the knowledge that he could make her his. She would not tell him no. The thought made his hands instinctively slide down to her hips, which had, minutes ago, began a slow roll that was filling his head with fog. She would enjoy it. He would take his time. He would treasure every moment, make every second perfect, a dream…

 _No…_

Hands slid behind her, pressing her upwards as he leaned back, until he was sitting, with her sprawled in his lap, legs still straddling his hips. She quirked an eyebrow at the change in position, but remained silent. He leaned his forehead into hers, eyes close and intimate. "Takara…"

"Dark…" She mirrored his tone perfectly.

"Maybe we should rest your ankle and then search for a way out of here." It killed him to say that to her, to not just push her back into the dirt and pick up where he had left off. He snapped out of his daydream when she heaved a sigh.

"You think I don't know that." She smiled at him and Dark almost went cross-eyed trying to look at it from this angle. "You think, even though I saw her leave, I'm not incredibly worried about my sister. Thank I'm not worried we might never make it out of her. That I'm still not even sure this entire day hasn't been some strange dream." She laughed, breath heavy between them. "Hell, maybe a loose trapeze performer fell on me and I'm in a coma right now." When she pulled back, he made to follow her, but she pressed a palm against his chest to stop him, forcing him to look at her. "But don't you think that maybe I wanted just a moment of happiness amidst all of that?"

Amethyst eyes blinked at her in bewilderment. "Happiness?"

She laughed in amusement, leaning back on her hands to watch him. "Yeah, you loon. You make me happy." She shrugged, even as her brows pulled down in a frown, more serious thought than anything else. "I don't really know why though. Ever since I met you in the park, I've felt like…" She struggled to find words.

"Like what?"

"Like I'd been waiting my whole life to meet you." Dark felt that it was a very good thing that he could feel the ground underneath him, otherwise he would have said he was falling. She smiled. "Is that silly?"

"No." His answer was exhaled on a breath, and he reached up to brush his knuckles against her smile. "No, that's not silly at all. I – " He paused. What could he say? That he felt the same? That the moment his eyes met hers it felt like he understood why he had spent generations and generations feeling like his life was missing something? That, for the first time, he wasn't jealous that his tamer's every lifetime got to find love? That, slowly, hesitantly, but with the gathering steam of a train, Dark was beginning to think that maybe he loved her? "Me, too."

She beamed at him, bright and joyful.

"But, Takara…" Her smile relaxed, but didn't fade. "I'm not –" He swallowed around the lump in his throat and forced him to say what at haunted him for lifespans. "I'm not _real_."

Her forehead crinkled when she frowned. "I really crashed into you in the park, didn't I?" When Dai's name started to pass his lips, she spoke over him. "I really went on a date with you at the circus. You really helped by sister escape this place. And," this smile was tinged with affection and want, "you really tried to get into my pants like five minutes ago." When Dark blushed red enough to match the poppies, she laughed. "You're real to me, Dark. It feels like we're the only things that are real right now."

His eyes softened at her, mouth beginning to quirk upwards at the corner in a smile. She was right. It did feel like they were the only real things in the world. Like… well, like it was dream world created just for them.

"Come on, we should find somewhere comfortable to rest and check your ankle." Placing his hands underneath her thighs, he stood, letting her legs wrap around him, sending his good thoughts spiraling into the gutter. He cleared his throat, but his next statement still came out rough. "And come up with a plan."

Walking under a copse of nearby trees, he settled them in the shade against its trunk, so they could stare out at the sea of poppies. The circle under the branches was fairly clear of the blooms, only small scatterings here and there.

"I remember in the _Wizard of Oz_ wondering if poppies really did make people sleepy," came Takara's voice suddenly. Her ankle was stretched out across his lap, and Dark was doing his absolute best to focus on checking the injured limb and not running his hands up with smooth expanse of leg her shorts bared to his view. He made a noncommittal sound at her statement. "Of course, when I got older I learned poppy juice was an ingredient in opium, so it kind of does." He made another agreeable sound, poking at her ankle. It seemed fine. She wiggled her toes enticingly, and pressed her foot against him. "I'm not very tired though…"

His breath hissed out of him, and his fingers clutched at her leg. _No that's worse_. Because now he could feel smooth, smooth skin and all he could picture was skin, skin, skin, and nothing else. His brain was doing an admirable job of trying to keep Dark focused though, because even as his finger pads began a slow dance up her calf, touching her so teasingly that she fell back against the ground with a whimper, his head was thinking about her observation.

Why weren't they tired? _Requiem_ was an artwork that fed off of people's dreams. It needed them to live. That was its sole reason for drawing someone into its canvas. When its power began to diminish, when it go too low, anyone who touched the ink was drawn into its folds. And _Requiem_ would never let them go. It would put them to sleep, and it would make them dream until they died. And every perfect dream was power for it. Every second of ecstasy that you imagined, the perfect life, it fed off, until it regained its strength.

 _Requiem_ had drawn them in because it needed power, and none of them had slept. Why?

When Dark's fingers brushed against the sensitive skin behind her knee and Takara gasped, his gaze was drawn to her: head thrown back in abandon, fingers clutching fistfuls of grass, knees pressed tightly together, and Dark had a sudden, irrational thought.

He didn't have a dream more perfect than this.

This young woman was every hope and every dream he could have imagined, whether he knew it or not. Maybe he couldn't fall asleep here, because his reality was better than anything anyone could imagine for him. This girl, this maiden –

" _Daaarrrrk_." His name was moaned out so sweetly he felt faint, he felt the same heart-clenching emotion that he had felt from every Niwa he had ever resided within, he felt -

Love.

"Dark!"

His eyes snapped up to her face, but she wasn't looking at him. She was staring behind her, head tilted back at an almost impossible angle. But her voice hadn't been seductive, it had been worried.

"What's wrong?" He forced his hands to still.

"Are those flowers coming closer?"

When he looked up, she saw what she meant. When they had sat beneath the tree, the intense field of bloom ended meters away, only a dozen were scattered beneath the tree's branches. But now… now the hoard of blooms was only a few feet from them, having inched closer and closer, so silently neither of them had noticed a thing. The scent was heady and overpowering. Dark paled.

The flowers.

The Hikari had become the flowers.


	8. Chapter 08 Wings

**Title:** Chasing the Dream  
 **Genre:** Romance  
 **Rating:** T  
 **Pairing:** Dark x OC, Daisuke x Riku, Satoshi x Risa  
 **Spoilers:** N/A  
 **Summary:** They used to say that if man was meant to fly, he'd have wings. But he did fly. He discovered that he had to.  
 **Word Count:** 2,017  
 **Warnings:** I'm pretending the anime ending never happened. So this is going the based off the abrupt ending of the manga and make assumptions as to what happened from there.

 **Disclaimer:** Not mine. Summary is from Star Trek: The Original Series.

 **A/N:** Dark deserves love. And if I'm being completely honest with you, I never liked Risa (other stories involving her notwithstanding). So I'm not pairing her with him here, and only for sake of avoiding two OC characters am I putting her with my Satoshi.

* * *

What ensued next was a bevy of movement, because when Dark yanked Takara to him by her wrist and leapt backwards, the poppies rolled forward in a crimson tide of petals and crashed into the ground where they had been sitting only moments before. Grass and rubble exploded outwards in a showering spray as the blossoms slammed into the earth.

"Shit!" Dark leapt back again and again, Takara clinging around his neck in terror and confusion. "Hikari!" His only answer was another display of flora careening towards them, so he dodged again. With another muttered curse, he yelled again, hoping to get a reaction from the creator of this world, a creator who so clearly wanted them dead. "Show yourself!"

Dark laughter began to emanate from the blooms, the thousands and thousands of flowers each become a tiny conduit for the Hikari. It was discerning, confusing, terrifying. The attacks has ceased as the poppies did nothing but laugh.

"Dark?" Takara's voice was quavering and scared, and, even in the midst of danger, Dark spared her a glance.

"Don't worry." He cupped her cheek for a moment, pressed a quick, harsh kiss to her lips. "I'll get us out of this." And then he danced away from her, leaving her at the edge of the meadow, while he drew the attention of their adversary towards himself.

"Come on, Hikari, show me your true form!" Dark paused, and laughed derisively. "Unless all Hikari are really just pretty flowers underneath."

"Beautiful, yet deadly," a voice hissed melodically. "Yes, I think that about sums up my family very well." In the middle of the field, a swarm of blossoms blew in a sudden wind. When the gale cleared, there was a man standing in its place. Though to say he was a man, might be an exaggeration. He had once been a man – that was clear. He sported the trademark Hikari structure: lithe and limber, all fine, delicate features, arched cheekbones, long fingers. His eyes were blue. But his hair was poppy red – a bright crimson cascade of tresses that fell around his face and to his hips like a waterfall of blood.

And underneath his skin, like living tattoos, images swirled. Down his arm danced a ballerina, who spun and was transformed into a gymnast. Dogs turned into horses into unicorns into dragons into mermaids. A man kissed a woman. A woman kissed a child. A man kissed a man. When a grin stretched across Hikari's face at the look in Dark's eyes, it made the knight astride his stead stretch across his cheek, before it suddenly ran off his face, lance pointed at an invisible foe.

"Things I've collected over my time here," he explained, at Dark's look.

They were dreams, Dark realized. Each one was a dream that had belonged to someone who had become trapped here, who had never left, who Hikari has sucked the life out of until all of their dreams became his. People who would never achieve their dreams now.

"You bastard!"

The grin only grew wider, and fiery phoenix wings burst into life across his cheeks, an embellishment in red and gold.

"Those were people just like you! All they wanted was to get something out of their life, and you took that chance away from them!"

The smile snapped away as quickly as a door being closed. "Just like me?" Dark had to dodge a sudden volley of poppies as they burst through the ground beneath his feet, growing in a thick, twisting vine. "I gave them what they wanted!" The phoenix on his features grew in brilliance until his entire face was illuminated by it. "I gave them happiness and hope and love!" The attacks were coming so swiftly now that Dark was barely ahead of them. "I gave them everything!"

"No, you took everything from them! You didn't give them a chance!"

To Dark's dismay, Hikari's eyes drifted to the edge of the field, towards where Takara was clutching the base of the tree, the only thing holding her up, her eyes were steady and determined on Dark. "A chance? You think a chance is better than a certainty?"

"Leave her out of this!" Dark was too far away, there wouldn't be enough time –

"What would a woman see in you, Phantom Thief? What could you offer her?" Hikari's voice was low, hypnotic, soothing. Dark felt himself swaying under the spell, even as he tried to shake it off. "Could you give her a home? Family?" A scoffing bark of laughter. "Or how about a life on the run? A life with a criminal? A man who is not even real?"

Dark felt his heart falling, cracking, breaking inside of him. What _could_ he offer her? She deserved so much more than what he was – she deserved a lifetime of hopes and dreams achieved. She deserved happiness and joy… she deserved love. His eyes trailed to her without meaning to.

She was still watching them, her face pale with terror, but resolute and steadfast, she was determined to see this through. Her eyes caught his as they fell on her, and they lit up when they met his, blue orbs in a pale face. He felt his stomach churn with emotion.

"But what if I could promise you a life with her? Happiness? You could have everything you ever wanted… you could be together. You could have a family. You could grow old together…" His voice was a slippery as a snake, oily and slick. It wove a spell as subtle as smoke around Dark, who could almost see this future unfolding before him.

 _Takara ran into his arms, laughing, happy, as Dark lifted her and spun her in circles. Around and around, laughing, and laughing… A kiss – soft and delicate, a promise for more, a promise for a lifetime… A gently rounded belly, disbelief, terror, happiness, home… Children with his eyes and her hair, Takara smiling as she watched him… Wrinkles deepening, but happiness overflowing…_

He could have that.

He could have her.

He could –

"Dark!"

Takara's voice cracked him from his reverie as abruptly as a rubber band snapping. With a sudden start, he realized that, as he had been lost in his dream of the future, the blossoms had drifted silently closer and closer, until they were mere feet from him. When he come back to himself, they surged forward and Dark only narrowly avoided them.

Hikari gave a wordless cry of rage. "Why do you persist in living your life?!" Attack after attack rushed forward. "Even when you know you will not get what you want!"

"But I might!" When Hikari didn't speak, Dark went on. "I know she might reject me. I know she might… leave me." It hurt to even say that, the words choking him. "But I also know that I _might_ get what I want. Maybe not all of it, maybe only some of it, but…" He glanced at her again. "Whatever my future with her is, I want every second of it to be with _her_." Amethyst eyes turned steely. "Not with you."

Blue Hikari eyes, blue so dark it was almost black, narrowed into slits, pupils blown wide in anger and wrath, barely visible against the backdrop of deep, red fire that was his face. "I will take your dreams from you, Phantom Thief – if it is the last thing I do!" And with one sweeping gesture of his hand, all of the poppies rose is a tsunami wave, and rolled towards Takara.

"NO!" For a breathless moment, Dark was immobile, unable to move from the sheer terror he felt at watching that swell of death roll towards her. Her face was bloodless in trepidation, eyes wide in her face, mouth open in a wordless scream of dread, too scared to run.

Then, something surged through him, something wild and dark and primal, and Dark reacted –

With a tear of fabric, great black wings burst through his shoulder blades, feathers dancing over the field. With one sweep, he was before Takara, arms braced around her against the tree, wings spread out behind him, holding back the force of poppies. Even though he was straining to keep them at back, he managed a wobbly smile at Takara. "Hey, gorgeous, come here often?" It surprised a shaky laugh out of her. He leaned down, planted a soft kiss on her nose. "Stay back," he whispered.

With a grunt of exertion, he swept back his wings, brushing the flowers back, and turned to face his adversary. "You're done, Hikari. You won't steal people's dreams anymore." Flaring his fingers, he displayed a handful of feathers, which he threw with a quick flick of his wrist. They landed in a perfect circle around Hikari, a blinding light flaring up, leaving him a ring of light.

"This is your plan?" He laughed. "And what is this supposed to – " His taunting cut off abruptly when he tried to step from the ring of light. He couldn't. No matter how much has tried, he simply could not step over the ring of feathers. "What is this?!"

Dark smirk, slow and sure. "You are trapped with my feathers, Hikari. There is no way to escape. No way to lure others into this dream." A dawning light of horror began to flicker in his eyes. "You will be trapped here with nothing but your own memories for company."

"You cannot leave me like this!" The phoenix was beginning to fade into a rain of ashes that drifted over his face like freckles.

Amidst his screaming, something barreled into Dark from behind, thin arms wrapping around his waist. "Oof!"

"Dark! I was so worried! Are you alright?" Takara had her face pressed between his shoulder blades, between his wings, and Dark could feel the wet slick of tears against his skin. Dark sucked in his breath when her face rubbed against the base of his wings. "You – you have wings…"

He turned slowly in her arms, wings folding around them, leaving them in feather-walled room, ribbon of sunlight dancing across their faces. "I – yes – I – "

"Dark, it's okay." She smiled ruefully. "I mean, I'm confused as hell since I just watched wings burst from your back, but I've seen the old news articles of Dark flying away from museums. I just kind of thought they were a little fake." Her eyes trailed around them. "I guess not."

"Does it – does it bother you?"

She smiled. "No, it doesn't."

"Hey, lovebirds, can you please focus on something outside your own world for five seconds?!"

The yelling voice made the couple jump like rabbits, hearts pounding in terror. "Hiwatari?" Dark asked incredulously, as they turned around.

The rip in the sky was back. Hiwatari was standing just inside _Requiem_ , arms outstretched as if he were holding the door open. Dark could see a shock of red hair on the other side. Dai. "Yes, you idiot, it's me. And it's not exactly easy holding this exit open, so if you are done making doe-eyes at one another?" He arched a questioning eye brow as Dark sputtered and Takara blushed.

But Dark still turned to Takara and gallantly offered her a hand, and, even though they hurried to leave, Dark made sure to help her through first, gently. And when she had vanished back into the real world, he paused for a moment to stare at Hiwatari.

"Thank you."

And then he stepped through the door.


	9. Chapter 09 Resolution

**Title:** Chasing the Dream  
 **Genre:** Romance  
 **Rating:** T  
 **Pairing:** Dark x OC, Daisuke x Riku, Satoshi x Risa  
 **Spoilers:** N/A  
 **Summary:** They used to say that if man was meant to fly, he'd have wings. But he did fly. He discovered that he had to.  
 **Word Count:** 1,762  
 **Warnings:** I'm pretending the anime ending never happened. So this is going the based off the abrupt ending of the manga and make assumptions as to what happened from there.

 **Disclaimer:** Not mine. Summary is from Star Trek: The Original Series.

 **A/N:** Dark deserves love. And if I'm being completely honest with you, I never liked Risa (other stories involving her notwithstanding). So I'm not pairing her with him here, and only for sake of avoiding two OC characters am I putting her with my Satoshi.

* * *

When they arrived safely back at the circus, it was empty. For a moment Dark was flabbergasted by the abrupt change in scenery, and returning into quiet and calm instead of the frenzy he had been expecting and preparing for. But his confusion only lasted a mere moment, because his first breath of air in the ring was with his own lungs, and his second was from Dai's body.

He was unable to stop the feeling of disappointment. He had forgotten, for a blissful moment he had actually forgotten, that he was not his own person. That he wasn't just a man rescuing a girl.

 _Hey, little Niwa._

"You're back!" Dark could feel the relief surge through Dai at the contact, relief that he made it out safe, relief that he was back inside Dai's head.

 _Yup, right back where I belong,_ even though he tried, he couldn't keep his voice free of resentment. _Where is everybody? It's like a ghost town here._

"Well when we got back, it was a mad house here. Security was trying to arrest us, since we kind of pulled the painting down with us, and apparently it's been with them for years. And then Kei-san had started yelling at everyone and managed to get us out. Then everyone was even more angry. But luckily he called Uncle Hiwatari." Dai turned and Dark noticed for the first time, Satoshi standing at the entrance, one hand protectively on his son's shoulder, as he spoke to the local police. As if feeling his nephew's eyes on him, he turned and caught Dai's eye. In that eerie way only people who knew about Dark could do, Satoshi looked right through Dai and nodded at Dark. Dai returned the gesture with a wave. "Uncle cleared the place out, and helped us get you guys out."

 _Thanks, kiddo._

"He said you'd deal with sealing the artwork?" It was more statement than question, but Dark answered it anyway, as they began to walk over to where Takara and Setsuna were alternatively hugging each other and laughing.

 _Yeah, he won't be bothering anyone anymore._ Dark was only half paying attention to Dai now, all of his focus on Takara, as she brushed tears of happiness and relief from her eyes, her hands seeming to flutter over her sister in a continued effort to assure herself that she was alright.

"Setsuna-san, Takara-san, are you alright?"

Two sets of blue eyes turned to smile at Dai. "Oh, yes, Dai-san!" The younger sister beamed, blushing, at him. "We were just talking about how brave you two were."

Takara's smile was slightly more forced, and she was staring into Dai's eyes like she was trying to see Dark. _See me, please see me…_ His fingers twitched with wanting to brush her hair behind her eyes, he wanted to hold her, consolidate her, wipe the tears from her cheeks.

"Is Dark –" she swallowed thickly, and then forced herself to go on. "Is Dark in there?"

Dai nodded. _Tell her I told her it would be alright._

"He said he told you it would be alright." Dai paused a moment, listening. "And that he wasn't lying when he said that you were better than any dream Hikari could create." Her eyes were brimming with tears.

"Oh, Dark…"

After that, Daisuke appeared with the Harada twins, and chaos broke loose again. Worried mothers and proud fathers took up so much time and attention, that it was only briefly that Dai could bid farewell to the Takahashi girls. Dark worried over the spark he felt when Dai held Setsuna's hand in his before they left. He held it as tightly as a promise. It felt like the future in one fleeting gesture. It felt like Daisuke kissing Riku and suddenly, irrevocably, knowing that he loved her. It felt like the end.

* * *

Two weeks later and Dark was coming to terms with the fact that his time was, once again, over. Dai loved her. And though he fretted and worried and panicked that Setsuna did not love him back, Dark had seen enough Sacred Maiden's to know what it looked like when one loved his tamer. He knew what the look in Setsuna's eyes meant already, even if Dai didn't. And she had already accepted that he was the Phantom Thief, in the carefree innocent way that some young girls have. She accepted it like she accepted that they sky was blue or that the sun was bright – it was just the way the world was. And once Dai confessed his love to her, she would reciprocate, and Dark would fade away, like a memory.

Never to see Takara like this. To be forced to appear again in the body of her nephew. To be the same, while she had lived a lifetime without him.

 _I can't do this._

"Can't do what, Dark?"

 _Nothing._ He huffed out a sigh. _Can you just make this confession quick? I have places to go._

"Places to go…?"

 _Don't worry about it, little Niwa_.

"Dark… I know the Phantom Thief is gone when – if Setsuna-san loves me, too, but… but you still stay with me, right?"

Dark smiled. _I'll always be with you, Dai_ , _just…_ _a much quieter version_.

"Dark…"

 _Don't worry about it, kid. It's the story of my life._ And if his voice still sounded sullen and bitter, well, he thought he deserved that, just a little bit. _Now let's go get that Maiden of yours!_

* * *

Setsuna was waiting patiently in the park, not too far from where Dark and Takara had first met. When she heard Dai, she spun, dress flaring out around her hips, even as her hair flared around her face, eyes bright and wide and joyful. "Dai-san!"

Dark felt that familiar feeling settle low in Dai's stomach, equal parts happiness and terror. "Setsuna-san." The way he said her name was like a prayer. "I have something to tell you. I –" He took her hands tightly in his, pulling her close, looking into her eyes. "I love you, Setsuna."

For a moment, there was stillness, then Setsuna erupted into movement, wrenching her hands away from Dai to fling her arms around his neck. "Oh, Dai! I love you, too!"

And just like he knew it would, just like he had felt dozens of times before, Dark felt a wrench along his heart, a rip along his soul, as he and Niwa began to split apart.

"Dark?!"

 _I'm still here, little Niwa_. He could feel Dai's concern seeping through the tattered remains of their bond and through the blurry vision he still had, he could make out Setsuna staring at him in concern. He thought he heard her ask what was wrong, thought that maybe he could hear Dai speaking to her, but it sounded far away, came to him only in fragments. He thought he heard Takara's name, but maybe that's just what he wanted to hear.

 _Niwa…_

"Y-yeah?" His voice was quavering.

 _This was the best lifetime I've had, kiddo… I'll see you again…_

"Dark?"

That sounded like…

"Dark!"

He tried to focus through Dai's eyes. Caught a fuzzy image of haloed blonde hair, suffused with sunlight, eyes a teary blue. Setsuna…?

"Dark it's me." The voice was soft, husky with tears. "It's Takara."

 _Takara…_ Dark tried to smile, but he was almost gone.

"Dark, here, wait." Dai sounded frantic, heart racing. No, wait… he was thinking so strongly about Setsuna, about his love that…

"Dark!" Takara threw her arms around a flabbergasted Phantom Thief.

 _Say goodbye, Dark_ …

"Takara," he breathed out her name with such tenderness as he wrapped his arms around her and pulled her close, tight enough that it probably hurt her, but she didn't say anything, only pulled him closer. He buried his face in the curve of her neck, one hand fisted in her long, long hair. "I don't want to go." He was startled to realize his throat was thick with emotion, his eyes pricking with tears.

She tried to say his name, but it came out a sob, instead.

Dark could feel his hold on Dai's body slipping, feel his time here coming to an end. He brushed soothing fingers through her hair, hoping she didn't notice them trembling, and lifted his head so he could press their foreheads together. "Takara, my greatest treasure." Her eyes opened and they stared at one another, lost in a world of their own, trapped behind the curtains of their hair. "Your heart is the greatest thing I have ever stolen in all of my lifetimes." She cast him a tremulous smile. "And if I live another hundred generations, I will never meet a thief as great as you: the girl who stole the heart of a Phantom Thief."

He pressed his lips to hers, urgent, harsh, demanding, trying to convey everything he felt in that one last desperate brush of lips. He tried to sear the memory of this moment into his mind: her mouth yielding and open under his, her body plaint in his arms, her hands clutching him closer at his waist, one fisted in the hair at the nape of his neck. She tasted like salt and soda, she smelled like sun. Her heartbeat pounded against his chest.

 _I love you. I love you. I love you._

"I love you."

When he pulled back, she made to follow, but he was already diffusing with light, body now Niwa, the part of him that was Dark silent and gone.

And Takara fell to the ground and cried.

* * *

" _ **It's been a long time since you've asked me for a favor, brother-in-law."**_

" _ **Ah, come on Satoshi, don't be like that, don't you want to help your nephew out?"**_

 _ **Glasses glinted as Satoshi reached up one graceful hand to push them up the bridge of his nose. "I suppose. What did you have in mind?"**_


	10. Chapter 10 The Black Wings

**Title:** Chasing the Dream  
 **Genre:** Romance  
 **Rating:** T  
 **Pairing:** Dark x OC, Daisuke x Riku, Satoshi x Risa  
 **Spoilers:** N/A  
 **Summary:** They used to say that if man was meant to fly, he'd have wings. But he did fly. He discovered that he had to.  
 **Word Count:** 1,238  
 **Warnings:** I'm pretending the anime ending never happened. So this is going the based off the abrupt ending of the manga and make assumptions as to what happened from there.

 **Disclaimer:** Not mine. Summary is from Star Trek: The Original Series.

 **A/N:** Dark deserves love. And if I'm being completely honest with you, I never liked Risa (other stories involving her notwithstanding). So I'm not pairing her with him here, and only for sake of avoiding two OC characters am I putting her with my Satoshi.

* * *

He could feel something pulling him out of the limbo he had been floating in for… how long? Years? Lifetimes? He didn't know. He never knew, until he opened his eyes and saw the world through a new body. He felt as if he were moving through tar, thick and constricting. He couldn't breathe. He couldn't see. He couldn't hear. It was so dark…

"… y? ... Su… ght…"

Voices. He could hear voices. Did they sound familiar? Did he know any of these people? Daisuke? Dai?

"… rk? … Dark… can… hear me?"

That was Dai. What was happening? How long had it been? Where was he? _Who_ was he? Why wouldn't his tamer speak?

"Little … Ni… wa…"

Was that him speaking? Hands lifted (he had hands!) and brushed against his face, his mouth. What…?

"Dark! Hey buddy!" _Daisuke?_ "Open your eyes."

Open…

With a supreme amount of effort, Dark forced his eyes open, blinking at the brightness of the sky above him. Two concerned faces stared down at him, father and son, both sporting matching faces of concern, both lighting up when Dark blinked up at them.

"What… is going on?"

Helping him into a sitting position, Dark pressed a hand to his head, looking around in abject confusion. They were in a park, full of flowers. In the distance, Dark could see the tall spires of buildings. Identical Niwa grins flashed at him.

"I called in a little favor."

Dark stared at Daisuke, a flashback to a lifetime ago. "A favor?" When Daisuke tilted his head across the field, Dark saw the father and son figures of the Hiwataris. "Satoshi paid me back for introducing him to his wife." A sheepish grin. "Well, I sort of did that, but whatever."

"Daisuke, where am I?"

Niwa's arms swept out to encompass the world around them. "You're in a painting. Satoshi did it. It's pretty good, huh?"

"The caliber is actually excellent, Niwa," came Hiwatari's disaffected voice from the sidelines, which Daisuke chose to ignore.

"A painting?'

"Uncle Kei calls it _The Black Wings_."

Dark looked around pointedly, as they all stood to their feet. "Yeah, I can see why."

Daisuke laughed loud and free, "I said the same thing. But Satoshi, he said, he hid a little magic in here just for you, since With is going to stay with us."

"Daisuke. What. Are. You. Talking. About."

"Satoshi created this place for you, Dark. So you don't have to be reborn anymore."

For a moment, silence. Then Dark erupted in rage. " _What?!_ " The Niwas took a step back. "You think you can just decide that for me? Put me here like a zoo animal, hang me up on a wall so what – someone can come seal me in a few generations?!"

"No, of course not, you would stay with us – "

"And what makes you think I'd want to be stuck here for all of eternity, with literally no one for company?!"

"What if you had me?"

Words abruptly failed him, as he spun to see who had asked the question, but knowing before he saw them that it was Takara. "W – what?"

She was beautiful, resplendent in a white dress, hair windswept and wild, eyes glowing and warm. "Satoshi-san and Daisuke-san have agreed to seal me in here with you… if you would have me?"

Dark was speechless, he had no words to describe what he was feeling. Joy, confusion, fear, adulation, want. But mostly, "No – Takara no." Her smile vanished. "You can't stay here, you can't give up your life for me."

"Oh, Dark," she smiled, now within arm's reach of him. "You idiot. Don't you see? I'd be giving up my life if I _didn't_ stay with you… I love you. I don't know why, but I do. You're all I need."

Feeling suddenly helpless with the hope that had begun to swirl within him, he couldn't breathe. But when he held out his arms in wordless supplication and Takara ran into them, he lifted her, laughing, and spun her around and around.

"Well, I guess that settles that then."

Turning to Daisuke, Dark tried to thank him, slid his eyes to Satoshi and tried to say something to convey how grateful he was for this, but he couldn't articulate that much emotion. Daisuke waved him off. "I think our families owe you for everything we've put you through Dark." He grinned. "We'll see you around."

Tearful farewells followed, and then, in a flash of light, the only ones who remained were Dark and Takara. For one moment, they were still, and then mouths crashed together, hands roamed over clothes, seeking skin, seeking validation that they were really here together, that no one was going to pull them apart. Dark groaned, lifting Takara off her feet in an effort to get closer to her. Hands fisted in hair, teeth clacked together.

But finally, the need for air was too great, and they pulled apart, panting into each other's mouths, Takara's feet still dangling a foot above the ground.

"So…" Dark panted. "Come here often?" A bright laugh was his answer, as he set her down. Taking a sweeping look around at the meadow, with the city in the distance, Dark was still confused. "Wonder why old Hiwatari called it _The Black Wings_."

Shockingly, Takara blushed. "I think maybe Risa-san gave him the impression that you would be utilizing your wings here." When he arched an inquisitive brow at her, he barely understood her mumbled answer. "I kind of like them."

Realization shot through him, even as his mouth stretched in a knowing, masculine grin. "Oh, really?" When her blush deepened, he drew his magic to him and let his wings burst forth, surprised at how easy it was. Dark tugged her close, letting his wings fold around them, feathers drifting softly around them in the breeze. "Is that better?" He all but purred.

Though she was still a becoming shade of red, Takara smirked at him and deliberately ran her hands through his wings, nails raking down the thin skin, fingers tugging at feathers, and his breathe hissed out of him. She flashed him a cheeky smile.

Without warning, his heart felt full enough to burst. That she was here, with him, _him_ , and no one else. That he would never have to be reborn again. That he was his own man here. That she chose this. He crushed her to him, kissing her fiercely, and she melted into him.

"Let's go explore our new home, shall we?"

His answer was a smile and, with a beat of his wings, they were gone.


End file.
